l. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a metal working machine for the manufacture of jewelry. (29/160.6)
2. Description of the Prior Art
The people of many cultures of the World adorn themselves with metal bracelets; therefore, the craftsmen in many cultures for centuries have made bracelets to be worn on the wrists. Many of these bracelets are flat. More specifically, they might be considered a segment of a cylinder. These are rather easily fashioned by the craftsmen.
Also, craftsmen make bracelets which are domed, or "donut shaped" or, more specifically, toroidal or having a segment of a toroid.
For the purposes of this application, the circle of the toroid that encircles the wrist will be called the "major circle" and will have a "major diameter" and the cross section will be called the "minor circle" and will have a minor chord. It is recognized that neither are true circles, but more nearly ellipsis. For simplicity the terminology "circle" and "diameter" will be used.
Instead of a full minor circle, the segment of the toroid usually includes only a segment of the minor circle. Also, rather than the minor circle being solid, (which is heavy on the arm), it is only the shell or the toroidal surface. The domed bracelet, or a segment of a toroid, has a particularly opulent appearance and often has the appearance of being solid and containing a mass of precious metal therein. Such domed bracelets are light but difficult to form.
The American indians of the Southwest residing in the general area of New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Colorado made domed bracelets before this invention. According to their techniques for making silver domed bracelets, the curved surface or dome is formed by hammering a blank with a hammer against a wooden block. The craftsmen generally work with silver which is a ductal metal.
More sophisticated machines might be designed to form a domed bracelet, but their use might be prohibited inasmuch as to find a commercial market the jewelry must be "hand made." There seems to be a market for jewelry items of this nature only if they are made by manual-operated tools and machines.
A search made upon this invention before the patent application was prepared disclosed the following patents considered by the Searcher to be pertinent:
______________________________________ Lambert 264,541 Schulmm 300,140 Evans 1,604,222 Carlsen 1,879,078 ______________________________________